The Excellency of a Gracious Spirit, Part 2 · Chapter 4
CAP. IV.
Comfort, and encouragement to thoſe who follow the Lord fully.
IF this following of the Lord fully, be the honour of the Saints before the Lord; then here is comfort, and encouragement to thoſe whoſe conſcience doth witneſſe, that their hearts, and wayes are fully after the Lord. What ever others do, yet there are a generation of men in the world, who doe fully follow the Lord; Bleſſed are you of the Lord, you are honourable in the eyes of God and man, you make up in part that hurt that is done to Religion by others; you bind up the wounds of Jeſus Chriſt, and do in part heale his ſcarres: If you bee content to give up all to God, to betruſt God with all, know that there are many bleſſed promiſes, full of mercy, and encouragement for you, that God will make good to the full unto you; yea, they ſhall come to you fuller of goodneſſe, and bleſſing than you can imagine. Caleb challenged this promiſe of God to him made in this place, upon this ground, Ioſhuah 14. 8. five and forty yeares after it was made; for hee was but forty yeares old when hee went to ſpie out the Land, and when hee challenged this promiſe in this place, bee ſaith verſe 10. I am this day foureſcore and five yeares old. Though God may ſeeme to deferre a while the fulfilling of his promiſe; yet bee encouraged to follow him ſtill, for the eye of God is upon you, to make good his word unto you, and the longer it ſtayes, the more full with good and bleſſing it will come. God ſeemed to deferre a long time that promiſe he made to Abraham, That hee would make his ſeed as the ſtarres of heaven; for two hundred and fifteene yeares after this promiſe was made, there were but ſeventy ſoules that came out of Abrahams loynes, namely, when Iacob went down into Egypt; which if we compute the time, wee ſhall find to bee juſt two hundred and fifteene yeares: for Abraham was ſeventy and five yeares old when the promiſe was made; hee was an hundred yeares old when Iſaac was borne; Iſaac was forty yeares old before he married, and hee continued twenty yeares without a child; and Iacob was one hundred and thirty yeares old when he went into Egypt; ſo that the time fals to bee juſt two hundred and fifteene yeares, which was juſt halfe the time, from the promiſe till the people of Iſraels comming out of Egypt, which S. Paul ſaith, Gal. 3. 17. was foure hundred and thirty years. Now obſerve, that whereas God halfe this time did but little for Abraham, in the fulfilling of this his promiſe, yet becauſe Abraham followed him fully, ventured himſelfe wholly upon the faithfulneſſe of the Lord, ſee how fully God came in with his mercy at the laſt; for, in the ſecond two hundred and fifteen yeares, hee ſo encreaſed his ſeed, that from ſeventy ſoules, they were growne up to bee ſixe hundred thouſand, and three thouſand, and five hundred and fifty, Num. 1. 45, 46. and theſe onelyonly from twenty yeares old and upward, ſuch men as were able to goe to warre; there was thus many of theſe, beſides all children and women, which it is like were far the greater number; yea, and the Tribe of Levy was not numbered amongſt this number; there were two and twenty thouſand and upwards of them beſides. Thus you ſee, how fully God comes in at the laſt in his mercy, and making good his word of promiſe to ſuch who follow him fully. Be you as full as you can in following the Lord, the Lord will bee as full towards you, in doing good unto you; Gods mercy ſhall be every as full, as your obedience can bee, 2 Sam. 22. 26. with the upright thou wilt ſhew thy ſelfe uprigh: The words are in the Originall, With the ſtrong and perfect, thou wilt ſhew thy ſelfe ſtrong and perfect. God will goe on ſtrongly to his perfection of mercy towards them, who doe goe on ſtrongly in their perfection of obedience towards him. Pſal. 11. 7. The Lord loveth righteouſneſſe, and his countenance doth behold the upright: The words tranſlated word for word are thus, The Lord loveth righteouſneſſes, and his faces ſhall behold the upright. Righteouſneſſes, that is, when all the duties of righteouſneſſe are together. And his faces ſhall behold; that is, all the ſeverall kindes, and manners of the bleſſed comfortable manifeſtations of his love the upright ſhall have. The great difficulties thou meeteſt with in Gods wayes, (if thou beeſt not diſcouraged, but goeſt thorow them) they ſhall turne to thy greateſt comforts: As Caleb, who was not diſcouraged by the Anakims thoſe great Gyants, and the ſtrong places they lived in, which ſo much diſcouraged the reſt; Therefore Hebron, the place of the Gyants, was given unto him for a poſſeſſion, Ioſuah 14. 12, 13, 14, and 15, verſes.
God certainly will remember the kindneſſe of thoſe who are willing to follow him through the wilderneſſe of difficulties and diſcouragements, Ierem. 2. 2. You who doe thus, ſhall die without ſtaine, without any blur, which few doe; your memories ſhall be ſweet, and bleſſed, when you are dead and gone: You ſhall have an entrance miniſtred unto you abundantly, into the everlaſting Kingdome of our Lord and Saviour Ieſus Chriſt, 2 Pet. 1. 11. This is promiſed, not onelyonly to thoſe that are godly, but abound in it, as verſe 8. They ſhall be as a ſhip comming gloriouſly into the Haven with full ſaile: Thus S. Paul, 2 Tim. 4. 7, 8. with much confidence and full aſſurance concludes, That ſeeing hee had fought the good fight, and finiſhed his courſe, and kept the faith, henceforth there was laid up for him, a crowne of righteouſneſſe, which the righteous Iudge ſhould give him at that day: hee challengeth it upon the righteouſneſſe of God. When the ſoules of theſe who have followed God fully, are to enter into heaven, the everlaſting doores ſhall ſtand wide open for them; as when great men come to a houſe, the great gates are ſet open for their entrance; and in Heaven, oh how full a reward ſhall there be there for them, as 2 Ep. Ioh. 8. verſ. There is fulneſſe of joy at Gods right hand, Pſalme 16. ult. So full as Ibi non guſtabunt quàm ſuavis ſit Deus, ſed implebuntus, & ſatiabuntur dulcedi…e mirifica. Cypr. de Aſſent.ſhall bee more than can enter into them; they muſt enter into it, becauſe it cannot enter into them; there they ſhall not taſte of joy and happineſſe, but ſhall bee filled up with them. This, Chriſt encouraged his Diſciples withall, Luke 22. 28, 29. Yee are they which have continued with mee in my temptations, and I appoint unto you a Kingdome, as my Father hath appointed unto mee. With this, S. Paul encouraged himſelfe, in all his afflictions hee met withall, while hee was following the Lord, 2 Cor. 4. ver. 17. For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a farre more exceeding eternall waight of glory.
Firſt, it is glory, and this word alone implies that there is exceeding 1much in it; but further, it is a waight of glory, yea, an eternall waight of glory; and more than that, an exceeding eternall waight of glory; as if yet it were not expreſt fully enough, hee addes further, a farte more exceeding eternall waight of glory; and what expreſſion can bee fuller than this? This was that likewiſe that incouraged Moſes in his full following the Lord, forſaking the pleaſures, the riches, the treaſures of Egypt, that hee migh follow the Lord fully; For hee had, ſaith the Text, a reſpect unto the recompence of reward, Hebrewes, 11. 26. And you whoſe hearts and wayes are fully after the Lord, have the more cauſe to rejoyce in this your bleſſedneſſe, becauſe it it is the bleſſedneſſe but of a few. Iniquity ſhall abound, ſaith Chriſt, and the love of many ſhall waxe cold, but hee that endures to the end, ſhall bee ſaved: It is but a hee, in the ſingular number, that endures to the end. Let theſe encouragements then fill your hearts with joy, and your ſpirits with renewed reſolutions and vigour, to fill up your courſe; let them fill your ſailes, that you may goe on with ſtrength, and proſper, and be for ever bleſſed in your way. I conclude this Vſe with that of the Apoſtle, 2 Cor. 7. 1. Seeing we have theſe promiſes, (theſe incouragements) let us labour to perfect our holineſſe in the feare of God. And thus I paſſe to the laſt Vſe, which is of Exhortation.